Eclipse Of The Heart
by Rollieo 122
Summary: Smithy/Stone slash. Takes place immediately after the end of the second part of the episodes with the bombings in May. Please tell me what you think, as it's a bit different! Final chapter up!
1. Hold Your Head Up High?

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Bill; it belongs to ITV. I do not own any of the main characters either, as they also belong to ITV. **

**_Author's Note:_ Right, now here's something completely different, so please let me know what you think...**

* * *

_**Hold Your Head Up High?**_

After his argument with Smithy (which probably would have ended up more violent than just holding each other's shirts had Gina not intervened), being ordered to go home by Gina and trashing the male locker room in anger, Sergeant Callum Stone sat on one of the benches with his head in his hands. He was still in this position when Smithy walked in 15 minutes later.

"You still here, Callum?" Smithy asked, surprised.

Callum looked up at the familiar voice and his name being mentioned. "... What?" he asked distractedly, somewhat confused.

"I'd have thought you'd be at home by now, or at least on your way..."

"Huh?"

"Inspector Gold sent you home 15 minutes ago!"

"Oh... right..."

"What happened in here?"

"... I was a bit ticked off after our... 'slight disagreement'...earlier..."

"And that's a good excuse to trash in here?" Smithy felt himself starting to get angry. _This'll only end in tears..._ Smithy thought. _Calm down!_

Stone stood up. "What's with all the questions?" Stone said, his voice rising in anger. _Don't fight fire with fire! It doesn't help!_ Stone thought. Smithy held his hands up in surrender.

"Sorry..." they both said at the same time, their anger subsiding.

"It's been a tough day..." Stone said apologetically.

"And I don't think I've really helped make it any easier for you..." Smithy said thoughtfully. "Look, mate, what I said earlier was out of order... sorry about that..."

"And my actions were out of line as well... sorry..."

"These past few days have been stressful for everyone, and I suppose we just took out our anger over everything, even past issues we had, on each other..."

Stone nodded his agreement. "So... kiss and make up?" Smithy looked at Stone incredulously. "Well, perhaps not kiss...", he added hastily. Smithy laughed.

"Shake on it?" Smithy offered his hand. Stone took it and the two of them shook hands.

"Right... Now that's over with..." Stone said, sitting back down on the bench.

"Are you okay Callum?" Smithy asked, sitting down on the bench next to Stone.

Stone sighed heavily, running his hands over his face. "Yeah..."

"You don't sound too convinced yourself... But seriously... how are you holding up?"

"Well..."

"Truthfully..." Smithy warned, sensing that Stone was going to spin him a lie.

Stone looked at Smithy. Seeing the concern in Smithy's hazel eyes, Stone sighed again, knowing that he wasn't going to win this battle against the dark haired sergeant sitting next to him.

"Truthfully, at the moment, not very well, but I'll be okay."

Smithy wasn't convinced. He raised an eyebrow questioningly. Stone rolled his eyes.

"Look, Smithy, you're not my mother..."

"Never said I was..." Smithy said cheekily. He shuddered. "Now that's a horrible image..."

"What?"

"Me giving birth to you!"

Stone shuddered too. "Please don't ever mention that again..."

"Can you imagine being related to you? It must be horrible!" That comment earned Smithy a gentle slap round the back of the head. "Oi! I was joking! Anyway... I know I'm not your mum, but I am a concerned colleague. So if you ever need to talk, you can call me... Okay?"

Stone rolled his eyes again. "Okay then..."

Smithy stood up. "Good. Now we've got that straight, I'd better get back on shift..."

"It's either that or face the wrath of the dragon that is Inspector Gold, I'm guessing..."

Smithy laughed. "Yeah, I suppose. Don't forget, you can talk to me..." Smithy clapped Stone on the shoulder. "Get changed, and get yourself home. Before I have to personally drag or escort you there!"

Stone smiled weakly at Smithy. "Thanks, mate. I'll just get changed, then I'll be off, all right matron?"

"Hey! Do I really look like a matron to you?" said a mock indignant Smithy.

"Yes..."

"Do you see me wearing a dress and an old grey cardigan?"

"That image will scar me for life! And anyway, you haven't got the legs for it..."

"Oi! That was uncalled for!" Smithy gently slapped Stone round the head, thus getting his own back. "Cheeky bugger..." Smithy added.

"Now that was uncalled for..."

"Anyway, I'm off..."

"Okay then..."

"Hang on a sec... give us your phone..." Stone raised an eyebrow. "You might need my phone number if you're gonna call me..."

"Good point..." Stone said, blushing slightly as he handed over his phone. Smithy laughed as he typed his mobile number and details into Stone's phone, then searched for and typed Stone's details into his own phone.

"Now you can call me..." Smithy said, handing back Stone's phone. "Anyway, I really must go now..."

"Maybe talk to you later then?" Stone asked hopefully.

"Maybe." With that, Smithy walked out of the locker room, leaving Stone to get changed.


	2. I Skip A Heartbeat

**_DISCLAIMER:_ I still don't own The Bill. And I also don't own the song featured in this chapter, which is Heartbeat by Scouting For Girls.**

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_ Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially SO943, SassyJ, Dr. Juliet Burke and A for Antechinus! I'm sorry for the delay, I've been really busy... Anyway, here's the next chapter! **

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_**I Skip A Heartbeat...**_

As soon as Stone had got changed, he walked out of the station, found his car and got in, deciding to drive around for a bit. He started the car and drove out of the car park and onto the road.

While he was driving, he thought about Smithy, and how the dark haired sergeant made him feel.

* * *

Stone hadn't noticed Smithy watching him get into his car and drive off from the front of the station, which was probably a good thing, as Stone wouldn't have been happy to know that he was being spied on. _Not that I class it as spying_, Smithy thought.

As he turned to go back inside the station, a song suddenly popped into his head, which seemed to sum up what he thought of Stone.

_**Am I alone in your heart?  
Have I hope with your heart?  
She's such a teaser, she's such a star.  
Give me a reason or gimme a chance.  
Am I alone in your heart, or am I alone...?  
It tears me apart.**_

It wasn't so much as that he disliked the song - on the contrary, it was one of his favourites - it was just the fact that he thought it quite appropriate at that moment in time. _Though I don't think that Callum would appreciate being called a girl..._, he thought to himself, and laughed at the thought of Stone wearing a dress. _Now he most __certainly __doesn't have the legs for it!_

Smithy walked through the station, humming the chorus of the song to himself.

_**Doing all I can do, just to be close to you.  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat.  
Always up for a laugh, she's a pain in the ass  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat. **_

* * *

Stone came to a stop at a set of traffic lights. He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, so that he had something to do while he waited for the lights to change. Bored of the silence in the car, he turned the radio on, and it happened to be playing one of his favourite songs (not that he would admit it...). _This is very suitable at the moment... _he thought.

_**Give me an evening, or give me a night.  
I'll show you the time, of your life.  
I'll walk you home safe, from the dark.  
I'll give you my jacket, I'll give you my heart.  
But she won't come dancing tonight,  
**__**She's having the time of her life.**_

He only needed one chance to prove himself to Smithy. He'd show him that he was a nicer person than he may have thought before they decided to be civil with each other. _I'm sure I could show Smithy a really good time, if only he'd let me... _Stone thought. _I'll probably have to get him to like me a bit more first though... And I think he'd object to being called 'she'!_

As the lights changed and the traffic ahead of him started to move on, Stone started to sing along to the radio as he moved off.

_**Doing all I can do, just to be close to you.  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat.  
Always up for a laugh, she's a pain in the ass  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat. **_

* * *

Smithy sat back at his desk, in the hope of doing some paperwork, but he couldn't concentrate – the only things he could think about were the song which had currently embedded itself in his head and Stone, which was potentially not a good combination. The annoying thing was that he could not get either thing out of his head, and he started singing quietly.

After watching Smithy staring into space for a good few minutes from her office, Gina wandered over to the sergeant's office.

"Are you feeling okay, Smithy?" she asked, standing in the doorway. He didn't reply. _What is he doing... _she thought. _It looks like he's... singing a song?_ Gina was confused.

"Smithy?" she repeated, this time a bit louder. He looked up and saw her hovering in the doorway.

"Sorry, I was miles away..." he said, a guilty look on his face.

"I guessed..." she replied.

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough... Are you okay?"

He sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine... I was planning on doing some work, but I can't concentrate..."

"Go home, Smithy. It's been a tough day for everyone..."

"Okay then..." He stood up to leave.

"Oh, and Smithy?"

"Yes?"

"Don't give up your day job..."

"What?"

"I don't think the world's ready for Dale Smith's rendition of 'Heartbeat' quite yet..."

Smithy blushed. "...Funny joke, Gina...!"

"I know. I thought so! Anyway, go home, before I change my mind..."

"Yes ma'am!" Smithy said, mock saluting Gina, before walking out of the other door, leaving her standing in the corridor laughing.

_**Doing all I can do, just to be close to you.  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat.  
Always up for a laugh, she's a pain in the ass  
Every time that we meet, I skip a heartbeat. **_

_**I skip a heartbeat for you...**_


	3. You'll Never Walk Alone

**_DISCLAIMER:_ I still don't own The Bill, and I doubt I ever will! I do, however, own the character of the barman, Mattie.**

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_ Thanks to SO943 and A for Antechinus for reviewing! Next chapter's here (sorry for the wait!)!**

*****

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*****

_**You'll Never Walk Alone**_

After driving around for a while, Stone arrived at one of the pubs which wasn't frequented by anyone at Sun Hill.

He walked into the pub, went to the bar and sat down.

"What can I get you, sir?" said the barman.

"Can I have a pint, please?"

"Sure, coming right up!"

Stone observed thoughtfully as the barman pulled the pint, watching the way his muscles flexed as he pulled the arm of the pump down, secretly wishing that it was Smithy he was watching. _Like I'm gonna get a chance to see that!_ thought Stone.

Stone was still deep in thought when the barman put the glass onto the bar in front of him.

"There you go, mate..." the barman said. He got no answer. "Hello?" he said, clicking his fingers in front of Stone's face. Stone looked at the barman questioningly, who pointed at the drink on the bar.

"Sorry, I was miles away..." Stone said, as he dug some money out of his pocket and handed it to the barman.

"That's alright, mate. Been one of those days, has it?"

"Nah... more like one of those weeks!"

"I know the feeling, mate..."

"And the bombings haven't really helped things... in fact, it's made things worse for us..."

"You a copper or something?"

"Yeah... but I suppose business here has probably gone down a bit since the bombs?"

"A bit... probably 'cos people are scared for their safety..."

"I suppose..." Stone said, taking a sip from his beer. As he sat at the bar, however, there was one thing that he could not get out of his mind, no matter how hard he tried: Smithy. But he had an idea, which could potentially make things better or worse between them. Even though they weren't the best of friends, it was only earlier that day that they had decided to be nicer to each other.

While pondering this, Stone had subconsciously drunk most of his pint, so when he picked it up again, he was surprised at how much he had drunk. He finished what was left of his drink and put the glass onto the bar. _Time to put this plan into action...,_ Stone thought. "Excuse me, can I have another pint please?" he said.

* * *

A little more than a bit worse for wear, Stone put the glass that hand only minutes earlier held his 10th pint down on the bar. He opened his mouth to ask for another, but before he could make any sound, the barman, Mattie, guessed what he was going to do.

"Don't you think you've had enough already, Callum?" he said. Mattie knew all about Stone and what he thought about Smithy, as Stone had just spent the last few hours telling him about it.

Stone muttered something incoherent.

"Is there anyone that I can call to pick you up? I'm not sending you in a taxi like this..."

"You-could-call-Smithy..." Stone slurred.

"What?"

"You could call Smithy..." Stone repeated, a bit more clearly.

"Alright then... Come on, give us your phone..." Stone handed his phone over to Mattie, who quickly found Smithy's number and called it.

"Hello?" said Smithy.

"Hello, is this Smithy?" said Mattie.

"Yes it is, who's asking?"

"Hi Smithy, I'm Mattie, a barman at The Rat and Crown Pub..."

"Hi Mattie. So how have you come to get Callum's phone?"

"I was just about to get onto that... Well, Callum here's a bit inebriated, to say the least... and there is no way in hell I'm letting him attempt to drive home, well, as you guys are coppers, I'm sure you'll know what I mean, and I refuse to stick him in a taxi, 'cos god knows what will happen to him then... So I was wondering..."

"...if I could come and pick him up?" Smithy finished Mattie's sentence.

"Pretty much, yeah..."

Smithy sighed. "I'm on my way... Anyway, Mattie, do you know why he did this?"

"Well, I do, but I think I'll leave that for him to tell you..."

"Okay... See you in while, then..."

"Bye, Smithy!" Mattie hung up and turned to Stone. "Right, Callum, Smithy's coming to get you, and he'll be here soon..." He didn't get any response. "Callum?" Mattie said, poking Callum's shoulder.

"Hmm...?" Callum said.

"I said, Smithy's coming to get you, and he'll be here soon..."

"Oh, okay..."

A couple of minutes later, Smithy walked through the door of the pub. To Mattie, Smithy looked like he'd just woken up, thrown some clothes on and driven right over to collect his friend: his dark hair was tousled but had the look of being deliberately styled, his blue jeans were crumpled, his white Converses were dirty but still managed to look cool, the red t-shirt he wore didn't look like it had been ironed; all this topped with the worn black leather jacket made Smithy look effortlessly cool. Mattie let out a low whistle. _Now I'm not gay, but he looks amazing... _he thought, _I bet all the girls fancy him..._

Smithy looked around the pub, trying to find Stone. He saw him at the bar and headed over.

"Callum, he's here..." Mattie said, poking Callum again.

Smithy stopped behind Callum. "Hi, you must be Mattie..." he said, holding his hand out to Mattie.

"Yes I am... So you must be Smithy..." Mattie replied, shaking Smithy's hand.

"Oi, what are you doing here?" Smithy said to Callum, poking him just under his ribs. Callum jumped, and attempted to hit Smithy back, but missed.

"Has he been annoying you?" Smithy said. Mattie looked into Smithy's hazel eyes, seeing the concern in them.

"Not really... But he has been telling me a lot about you..."

Smithy blushed. "He has?"

Mattie nodded. "But all good stuff..." he said, blushing as well.

Smithy smiled. "How much does he owe you, Mattie?" he asked, pulling his wallet out of his pocket.

"£10.80..."

"My god, how much did he drink?"

"10 pints in total, but he paid for the first one himself..."

"Jesus..." Smithy said, handing over £15. "Keep the rest for yourself..."

"Thanks, Smithy..." Mattie said.

"Anyway, I'd love to stay and chat, but I'd better get this one here home... We've got work tomorrow..."

"He's gonna have one hell of a hangover tomorrow morning..." said Mattie, wincing.

Smithy rolled his eyes. "Don't I just know it..."

Mattie laughed. "Do you want some help?"

"Nah, I'll be fine..." Smithy said, grabbing Callum. "Come on, you great lump... Let's get you home..." He dragged Callum to his feet. Mattie started laughing again.

"Well, I'm sure I'll see you again sometime, Mattie... It was nice to meet you... And thanks for looking after Callum..."

"That's okay, my pleasure! See you around, Smithy!" said Mattie, as Smithy escorted Stone out of the pub.

* * *


	4. Is This Our Fate?

**_DISCLAIMER:_ Still don't own The Bill.**

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_ So, here it is: the final chapter! Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers, especially SO943, A for Antechinus and SO859! Hope you enjoy it!**

_**Is This Our Fate?**_

"Come on, Callum..." said Smithy, as he half dragged, half supported Callum on their way back to Smithy's flat. Smithy had made the decision that he was not leaving Callum on his own overnight considering the condition he was in within seconds of seeing him at the bar. Smithy also didn't know where Stone's house was, and frankly, couldn't be bothered to pester someone at the station to find out, as he would most certainly not get a straight answer from his rather inebriated colleague.

"Callum, please, help me out here..." Smithy said, regretting his decision to walk to the pub, as he would now have to drag a certain very drunk sergeant back to his flat. _At least I don't have to drag him up any stairs..._, Smithy thought. _And anyway, if he actually decides to try to walk, it should sober him up a bit..._

Smithy sighed deeply, trudging on through the darkness, guiding his friend back to his flat, deep in thought.

* * *

About 20 minutes later, Smithy and Stone stopped outside Smithy's flat. Smithy dug his hand into his pocket, looking for his keys. He found them, unlocked the door, grabbed Stone, and pulled him over the threshold and deposited him rather unceremoniously on the floor, before shutting the door behind them.

Before he could blink, however, Smithy found himself pinned to a wall by Stone.

"What the...?" he exclaimed. Stone's face was inches from his.

"You know, since we had our little chat earlier in the station, the only thing I could think about was you, Smithy, though I'm not sure why..." Stone said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper.

"To be honest, the same thing's been happening to me..." Smithy replied. He looked into Stone's blue eyes, and Stone looked into Smithy's hazel ones, which, in the darkness, were glinting in the dim moonlight through the window.

Smithy wasn't at all prepared for what happened next. Seconds later, Stone's lips collided with Smithy's in a gentle kiss. It took a few seconds for Smithy to realise what was happening, but in those few seconds, the passion intensified.

"Callum, what are you doing?" Smithy said, pulling away. His attempts were in vain, however, as Stone captured Smithy's lips again fiercely.

"Stop, Callum... Please..." Smithy pleaded, which was enough to make Stone realise what he was doing was not what Smithy wanted.

"I'm sorry, Smithy..." Stone whispered, averting his gaze from Smithy's eyes.

"Don't worry about it Callum... Come on in..." Smithy replied, grabbing Stone's arm and supporting him as they walked over to one of the sofas in the flat. Smithy sat down on end of the sofa, and motioned for Stone to sit down as well, who collapsed in a heap onto the sofa with a sigh, the upper part of his body resting on Smithy.

Smithy put his feet up on the table in front of him. "You wanna talk about it?" he said, looking at Stone.

Stone was silent for a moment, before saying quietly "I should have been there..."

"But if you were, you would have been killed too!" Smithy countered.

"At least that would have been better than feeling guilty..."

"And what about the people who care about you?"

Stone laughed dryly. "What people? No-one cares about me..."

"I'm sure there are people who care about you, Callum. And they would have missed you if you had been there, as would everyone else at the station!"

"Even you? Considering we've spent most of our time battling with each other?" Stone asked angrily, looking up at Smithy.

"Even me..." Smithy replied calmly, looking back at Stone. Stone looked away, feeling ashamed. There was silence for a couple of minutes, before Stone looked looked back at Smithy, who was looking out of the window.

"Thanks, Smithy..." he said

"What for?" said Smithy looking away from the window and at Stone.

"For all this: picking me up and letting me talk to you..."

"That's alright, mate, any time..."

And even though Stone could not see Smithy's face properly in the semi darkness, from what he could see, he could tell that Smithy was serious.

* * *

Smithy was the first to wake up the next morning. He felt a strange sensation in his legs, like they had gone to sleep. He looked down and jumped when he saw Stone lying on his lap. His movement woke up Stone, who looked at a shocked Smithy with a puzzled look on his face, before putting his hand on his head and groaning.

"Good morning to you too!" said Smithy, rubbing his eyes.

"What happened last night?"

"Well, I seem to remember you getting yourself completely hammered, and I picked you up from the pub... Then I seem to remember you trying it on with me when we got back here..."

Stone looked up at Smithy in horror. "Oh no... I didn't did I?"

"Oh yes. You did."

Stone looked mortified. "Oh my god, I am so sorry..."

"Don't worry about it... But then, after that, I seem to remember us having a little chat, but then you fell asleep... Obviously I wasn't far behind you... And I'm guessing you now have the mother of all hangovers..."

"Oh yes..." At which point, Smithy's phone rang. Stone clamped his hands over his ears. Smithy located his phone and answered it, mouthing 'Sorry' at Stone.

"Hello?" he said.

"Are you alright, Smithy?" said Gina

"Yes, I'm fine, ma'am..." He looked at his watch and cursed. He was late.

"Language, Sergeant Smith..." Gina said mock sternly.

"I'll be in in about 20 minutes, ok?"

"You'd better be. And try to round up Sergeant Stone while you're at it, he's not answering his phones..."

"Yes ma'am, I'll find him for you..."

"See you in 20, Smithy."

"Bye, ma'am..." Smithy hung up. "Well, we'd better get going then, hadn't we?" Smithy said to Stone.

He sighed. "I suppose..."

When they arrived at the station a little over 20 minutes later, it was most definitely back to business as usual.


End file.
